The Buria Stories
by Gigi256
Summary: The Short Stories and One Shots Written for the Buria Campaign. Follow @buriacampaign on tumblr for updates
1. Dimitri's Prison

They didn't trust him at first. More importantly, he didn't trust himself.

That's why we were sitting here now, side by side, as close as he'd let me in this little jail cell. Not to mention the guardian the posted outside the door, the steel handcuffs securely clasped around his wrists, and the nearly two and half foot mile that seemed to stretched between us.

When I had come in, he had been mumbling to himself in Russian. My trip wasn't long enough to make me fluent, but it was long enough for me to pick up a few things.

"..name.. Dimitri Belikov… Baia, Russia... turned Strigoi... Princess Vasilisa Dragomir restored me. I'm dhampir. I'm dhampir. I'm dhampir..."

Now it was just silence. Two days ago, he was staring me down with red-rimmed eyes, and now Dimitri couldn't even bear to look at me, it seemed.

"Dimitri?"

He didn't speak, and only the steady rise and fall of his shoulders told me he was even breathing.

"Can you please...just say...something? Anything? Just let me know that I made the right choice in coming to see you."

He scoffed. Well, I guess it was better than nothing.

"That's the thing, Rose. I'm not sure you did. I'm not really sure of anything right now."

"Well, maybe I could clear some things up for you. I know I wasn't there for everything, but I was around for a lot in the past nine months. Just ask me, and I'll tell you if it's real or not."

I hated the skepticism in his eyes, as if he couldn't tell whether or not to trust me, but with no other option he took a deep breath and turned to face me.

"You attacked me when we first met."

"Real. And you kicked my ass."

He didn't have any reaction at all, simply staring at the open air between and considering his next question.

"I became your mentor..."

"Real, though I don't exactly know why."

"I saw potential in you. You deserved better, even if you had made a reckless decision with the princess." There was a small flash of annoyance, the same one that shown when I had gotten mouthy during out early lessons and I realized I had cut him off earlier. "I became your mentor and that's how we became close. When did we become more?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure. It just sort of...happened. I mean, you were attractive, but it wasn't like I set out for this. Neither of us did. I'm sorry, that's a hard one."

"Then how about something easier? A few people found out, real or not real?"

"Real." I answered, much more confidently than before. "Victor Dashkov for one, that's how he caught us in the lust charm. Alberta and Adrian also figured it out along the way too. Granted, I think a whole lot more suspect something since I ran off to find you after the battle."

It was quiet for a long time after that. Probably for only ten minutes or so, but it was long enough for me to start getting restless and start to wonder if I should leave. Just as I was about to say something, perhaps to break the tension and excuse myself for the day, he spoke again, much quieter than before.

"We..." He looked away for a moment, gathering strength, "we had a moment, together, before I was awak- turned. Real or not real?"

I couldn't help but smile, even if the memory would always be coated with a bittersweet afterglow of losing him. "Yes, that was real. I was hurting. I lost myself to the Spirit Darkness and you managed to pull me back. I think we finally just realized that we needed one another." I shrugged timidly, trying to act nonchalant about something that meant the world to me once I realized his eyes were searching for the same connection to the memory and coming up short. It wasn't there for him, and whatever he could see and feel obviously didn't affect him the same way it affected me.

Whatever thought was on his mind, he buried it for them moment, opting for another question instead.

"And after...did we.."

"No," I asserted instantly, wanting to reassure him. "You wouldn't allow it. At least not proper sex. There was some more minor stuff here or there but it was mostly only when you bit me."

I knew it was an unconscious reaction to my words on his part, but Dimitri's tongue ran along the phantom shadow of his fangs, no longer present in his restored Dhampir form, but the act sent a longing shiver down my spine that I knew he still saw. I regretted it instantly.

"Nothing about that can be considered 'minor'. I fed from you daily, or at least as often as I could. Real or not real?"

He was right. Dimitri had basically forced himself on me the first time in that gilded prison, taking me by surprise and attacking me until I gave into him and the effects of the endorphins. After I was hooked, it didn't take much more than his smile to leave me begging for his bite. Dimitri only relented once I asked him to spare me a few days right before I ended up escaping. It had taken all my control not to succumb to him again during that time, and as much as I hated to admit it to myself (and I could never say it to him, ever) there was a part of me that still longed for the rush of his teeth breaking the skin of my neck as his skilled hands explored my skin everywhere else.

"Real," I answered simply.

"I wanted to turn you."

"Real."

"And when you refused, I wanted to kill you." His voice wasn't just filled with shame, but almost disbelief. "I tried to kill you multiple times."

"Well to be fair, I did try to kill you too."

"This isn't a matter to joke about!"

The sound of Dimitri's raised voice and him jumping up from the flimsy cot was enough to alert the guard.

"It's fine, Jackson. I promise." Eli eyed Dimitri skeptically, but eventually took my reassurance. As soon as Dimitri relaxed and he and I had relative privacy again, I apologized.

"Real, Dimitri. This _isn't_ something to make light of, I know."

"No, you _don't_ know, 'cause the worst part is that I wouldn't have cared for more than a second or two. Even then I wouldn't have mourned the woman that I once trusted more than anything and would have given my own life to protect. I would have been significantly more upset about the fact that I lost a strong ally that I could control and a..." he bit his lip, as if the next words were physically painfully for him to say before spitting them out quickly, tearing off the Band-Aid in one quick motion, "a plaything."

I won't lie. It hurt to hear him call me those things, but it seemed to hurt him almost as much.

"That's all I thought of you as, Rose. Yes, I was obsessed with you. I had to have you, but I didn't actually care about you. Not like I once did. I just wanted you. For my own power, for my own lust, for my own selfish reasons. There wasn't a single moment while you were in that horrible prison where I actually cared what happened to you as long as it worked in my favor."

I found my arms folded against my body, as if it would somehow protect me against his horrible words. They weren't a sufficient shield though. And really, I don't think I was surprised. Part of me knew, even while I was there in that Russian compound, that Dimitri wasn't the same man I had loved. That's why I had set out to kill him in the first place. But...I failed. In the end it worked out – I found an impossible miracle and he had been restored to a dhampir – but the damage done to him, to us both...

"And now?" I asked.

"Excuse me?" The question seemed to take him by surprise.

"Would you care now? If anything happened to me?"

It was quick, so quick that I almost thought it was a trick of the low light, but I knew that look in his eye so well from months of hidden glances in early morning practices and too-long stares over the Academy grounds.

"Of course, Roza. I'd rather die myself than let something happen to you. I care about you. I do."

My cheeks burned, not from a blush but from the extreme effort it took not to smile like a fool. _Roza._ It hurt my heart nearly as much to keep from hoping.

Instead, I started small, reaching out to take his hand. It was the first physical contact that either of us had initiated since his restoration, and while he flinched slightly, he did accept it.

"See, you aren't the same as you were on that bridge. I know you did things you weren't proud of over the past few weeks; things that you, Dimitri Belikov, never would have done in your right mind. That wasn't you."

"But it was. That monster wasn't something that possessed me. It lived there before, it was just allowed to come to the surface uninhibited. That person is still in me somewhere." The fear there was familiar, too familiar. "What if it comes back? I don't want to become that thing again."

"I understand. The darkness is the same. It comes from Lissa, but it feeds on what's already there, Dimitri. My fear, or my sadness, or my anger. That all starts with me."

"How do you fight it?"

"Day by day, some more successfully than others. And I have help. You've helped me in the past."

"The cabin...before..." His eyes implored me questioningly, somehow still unsure.

"Real." I gave his hand a quick squeeze or reassurance. "You have people who want to help you too. There are people who want to see you get better. You deserve to be happy. We care about you, Dimitri."

His hand pulled away from mine forcefully, rubbing at his face as he shook his head. "You shouldn't. You shouldn't. You shouldn't."

"Shh." It wasn't until I was literally kneeling in front of him that I was able to recapture his attention.

"I hurt you."

"It's okay. I forgive you."

"I'm a monster."

"No. You aren't."

"You should hate me."

"Never. I love you."

"You..." Whatever argument he planned on throwing at me next died instantly. "You love me? Even after everything I did to you? You still love me...Real or not real?"

"Real, Dimitri. Always real." Because no matter what, that would never change.

"Guardian Hathaway!" Eli called from outside the cell again, slightly echoing around the cinderblock walls. "Hans is looking for you. Plus, visiting hours ended five minutes ago and someone's gonna call me on it here soon."

"Thanks Eli." I knew he was trying to give us as much privacy as possible by staying out of sight behind the wall, but there was only so much he could do. Still, I appreciated the effort and it looked like Dimitri did too. "I should probably be going."

"Wait," Both of Dimitri's hands sprang forward, still bound together by the steel cuffs. "You'll come back tomorrow?"

"Real."

He smiled as I left, and as I walked away, I could hear the faint sounds of him talking to himself, this time in English:

"My name is Dimitri Belikov. I was born in Baia, Russia. I was turned Strigoi against my will. Princess Vasilisa Dragomir restored me. I'm dhampir again. And somehow...Roza still loves me. She still loves me. I'll be okay. She loves me."

* * *

 **Author's Note**

* * *

This short was inspired by, and is dedicated to, Doubtthestarsarefire. She wrote a post a short while ago comparing Dimitri's restoration to Peeta who had his own difficult struggles in the third book of the Hunger Games series. For those of you who have read Mockingjay, I'm sure you have noticed some VERY obvious similarities, so thank you to Suzanne Collins for her wonderful story and inspiration as well. I hope you all enjoyed the story.

Please be sure to follow Buria Campaign on Tumblr (as well as my personal tumblr: gigi256, and my VA tumblr: VAfiction) and if you liked this story, share and reblog from there! Thank you so much for reading!


	2. Shut Up & Dance With Me

**Shut Up and Dance With Me**

 _ **Based on the same song from Walk the Moon. Rose, Lissa, and Christian take a post-graduation trip to a large outdoor music festival. Dimitri is dragged to the same festival by his cousin, Adrian. Rose and Dimitri meet and the attraction is instant, especially when she asks him to dance.**_

"I think the pole goes through this tab here before you stake it down, Christian."

Lissa held a set of instructions, the folds still crisp and new as she looked at the accompanying pictures, and trying to make sense of images as Christian let out a frustrated grunt.

"I know how to set up a tent," he insisted, following her suggestion anyways and acting like he discovered fire when it miraculously worked.

Rose and Lissa shared an eye roll over the sandwiches she was making, but while Rose had to contain her scowl at the would-be boy scout, Lissa watched him fondly through the lenses of love. These were two people she loved most in the world. They were there for her when she needed them, and she was there for them. Her family left her with Lissa and disappeared when she was young. Then when Lissa's own parents and brother died last year, Rose and Christian became the closest thing she had to family. Rose and Liss were practically sisters and Christian would probably be legally bound to Lissa within a few years' time once they got around to marriage.

Until then, the three of them made a little family of their own and they were celebrating their high school graduation at an outdoor music festival one state over. As Lissa had described it, "it was a lot like Coachella, but significantly more affordable." So for the next three days, they'd enjoy music, campfires, and fun; a last hoorah before Lissa and Christian left for Leigh that fall and Rose stayed behind at community college.

The memory that Rose would soon be alone in a few months' time left a painful stab in her heart, but she pushed it aside. There would be plenty of time to think about that later. This weekend was about fun, not future worry.

Thirty yards and one row away, another tent was being set up, much more efficiently with the faithful help of instructions.

"Were you an Eagle Scout or something, Dimitri? I should have timed you." Adrian stood watching – no _'supervising' –_ as Dimitri finished up the last bit of the rain fly before brushing the dirt off his jeans. At least his cousin had the good sense to pop open the tab of a cold beer in thanks. They'd probably eat their lunch before setting up bedding and whatnot. The music wasn't supposed to start for another few hours, though Dimitri could hear some of the various bands doing their sound check over the hill.

This whole trip had been Adrian's idea. He had originally planned to get into the famed Coachella but didn't realize how quickly tickets sold out each year and settled for the much closer and much less expensive local festival instead. Secretly, Dimitri wasn't too upset. He wasn't one for excessive crowds. Sure, getting lost in the fray for a weekend would be nice, but he could do that among the several hundred here rather than the several thousand there.

"Maybe we should have brought two tents..." Adrian suddenly mused around his bite of fast food take out. Dimitri raised an eyebrow, suddenly wary of where the conversation was turning. "Or you know, at least set some ground rules about picking up girls on this trip."

"How about we set the rule as 'no picking up girls on this trip'?"

Adrian looked aghast, almost personally offended. "That's what this whole trip is about!"

"I thought it was about good music?"

"Have you seen the lineup? Do you recognize _any_ of the names? There's maybe two or three up and coming bands, but most are just cover bands playing the music we were _supposed_ to be listening to back in California!"

"Still your fault."

"Still not helping"

"Still don't care."

The two men stared silently at one another, waiting for the other to break. It was a game of wits that they played often since childhood and through the years Adrian had a near perfect record of losing to Dimitri's stoic patience. However, that skill wasn't a useful one when getting the last word meant making the rules.

"Anyways," Adrian reasserted. "I'm getting laid. If you have any brains, you will too."

With a sense of finality, all Dimitri could hope for was that Adrian would strike out among this crowd. He certainly wouldn't be looking for any quick pickups for the weekend. That had never been his style, always preferring serial monogamy over meaningless strings of one night stands.

A trio of kids walked by their tent, barely noticing as Adrian called out to the dark haired girl. To Dimitri's amusement, she ignored him completely.

At twenty-four, he should have felt right at home with this crowd, but he felt almost too old – though he was far from the oldest. That honor was reserved for the neon-dyed, gray-haired hippie who had been bragging about being to every single concert since the inception of them.

Still, he didn't feel like he quite belonged. It seemed like most of the people at the festival were between eighteen and twenty-eight, with fewer numbers the older you began to look. Dimitri had the unique privilege of becoming the reigning man of his house at thirteen after kicking his abusive father out. It aged him much quicker than it should have. He began working a part-time job to help his mother pay the bills shortly afterward at fourteen, moving to full-time as soon as possible, and even now most of his paychecks went to provide for his family back home. He didn't complain, but it had been a point of contention with the last girl he dated seriously.

As he watched the carefree trio throw back their heads in laughter, walking off towards the main stage that was already beginning to fill with people eager to see the first acts of the day, Dimitri chugged the last of his beer and contemplated if some freedom might actually be good for him this weekend.

* * *

There were several stages set up, all with different bands. The main band was playing some rock headliner that was actually really good, but the crowding alone was more than enough to get to Dimitri. He was fairly certain the Adrian was lost somewhere in this mess of people, but there really was no way to tell. The last he had seen of his cousin was about an hour ago when he had come over raving about how he had seen this "beautiful goddess" over by the smoothie stand with some sort of gold lily face paint and how he was going to go find her. He had shoved his leftover chili cheese fries into Dimitri's hands and taken off. He had either found Lily Girl or was still searching. Either way, his fries were long gone.

The sun was setting, giving the atmosphere an almost carnival-like sense with the food stands, pop-up shops, and smaller stages, but the upbeat tempo of one particular stage drew Dimitri in more than the others. Where most of the bands were playing rock songs or more modern pop songs, this band had almost an 80's vibe to it. Memories of his mother and sisters (and yes, even him, though he was loath to admit it publicly) dancing to Michael Jackson and Prince baited him and he was helpless to the thumping bass as it reeled him closer to the sound.

It seemed he wasn't the only one who was a victim of the night, though. Everyone was dancing. Not just the static jumping that you typically find in concerts or the gyrating bump and grind of those too horny to make it home. True joyous dancing of people enjoying themselves and getting caught up in the music. There were certainly people paired off, couples who were in love if only for that night, but there were also many who were simply having fun. The band seemed to thrive on the energy and encouraged their dancing with the intro of the next song.

Right in the middle of the throng of dancers, Dimitri saw them: the trio from earlier. He recognized the dark haired girl from before. A backless dress and a pair of worn chucks made her the picture of perfection right now. She seemed completely at ease, dancing like she didn't have a single care in the world and was the epitome of joy. Just watching her made him happy. Until she looked at him. His initial reaction was to look away, but that would only serve to make him look even more guilty so he met her stare bravely, trying to show that he wasn't a threat. When she smiled at him, his chest tightened in a way he couldn't begin to understand. He didn't know how it happened, but next thing he knew, she took his arm was leading him onto the floor. He barely looked behind him to see the crowd fill the now vacant empty space he had been standing moments ago when he felt her tug on his hand again.

"Oh no! Don't you dare look back!" She grinned, using all her strength to pull him along to the center of the floor. "Come on! Just keep your eyes on me." She had to practically shout at him over the bass, but he couldn't deny the glint in her eye as she smiled at him. Her hands held his as she moved around him, twisting herself under his arm and laughing as he began to play along.

Song after song, they danced together. Sometimes touching, occasionally side by side, often just watching as she jumped and laughed with her blonde friend while he exchanged amused smirks with the boy that had accompanied them.

Throughout it all, he could feel himself connecting more and more with this girl who could anticipate his every move and make him laugh with a silly face or an enthusiastically miss-sung lyric to one of his favorite songs. But he didn't even know her name.

When the physical exhaustion started to overwhelm the chemical kryptonite of the pounding music, he excused himself with little more than a wave and a smile to his mysterious Juliet, hopelessly content to leave her in a discotheque teenage dream for them both to look back on during the lonely night. There was no way he could pull her away from her friends, especially when their interaction had less to do with words and more with erratic movements that passed for dancing on occasion. She certainly made it look better than he did, in any case.

Rose almost didn't see him leave. For someone so tall, he moved swiftly and with a near grace that was practically unfair. With the music so loud, he was practically silent. Still, his long hair peeked out over the heads of the crowd as he walked away and she didn't hesitate to chase after him.

"Where are you going?" Her voice was a bit breathless, both from dancing and from running. Each of his steps was about two of hers.

"I figured I'd about call it a night. It must be getting close to midnight, but you should go back. You looked like you were having fun with your friends."

Rose's eyes widened. It was the first time she had really heard him speak and his accent took her by surprise. She had heard his laugh several times, but apparently, that wasn't enough to pick up on the foreign undertones of his speech. If she had to place a guess, she'd say it was Russian, though she was hardly an expert in such matters.

"I was, but I was having fun with you too." She smiled, hoping to take off the pathetic edge of her words. She wasn't one to run after guys, but there was something about this one that had caught her eye and intrigued her from the start. There was something that made her seek him out and take his hand. Now there was something about him that didn't want to just let him walk away.

The man looked a bit stunned, but eventually, his smile appeared and sent a small stirring of flutters through her. "I apologize. Would you like to get something to eat..." he paused a moment before laughing and shaking his head. "I'm sorry, I don't even know your name."

"Oh! I'm Rose. Rose Hathaway."

"Dimitri Belikov."

"Well, Dimitri, I hear there is a pretty killer doughnut shop down the way."

* * *

A bag of a dozen mini doughnuts and several hours later, they were deep in conversation. For two people who had spent the first several hours of their meeting in a purely physical relationship on the dance floor without even knowing the others' names, they were now sharing secrets that they wouldn't dare tell another. Rose shared how she was nervous to be alone for the first time in years when her friends took off for Lehigh, even though she was immensely proud of Lissa and Christian's accomplishments and supported them 100%. Dimitri admitted that he was less than thrilled with the life he had worked tooth and nail for since he was a child but was afraid to really do anything about it, especially since his family back home still depended on him a little financially. Rose talked about being abandoned since childhood and Dimitri tried to soothe her pain by sharing stories of his childhood home; the good, the bad, and the horrifyingly ugly.

And the longer they sat together, the more that Dimitri felt like he could reveal as if she had somehow bewitched him to tell every secret that he held. He would give them all to her for just another moment or two to chat. He hadn't been one to believe in things like fate before, but he was starting to believe their meeting was inevitable; they were bound to get together.

Rose was telling him about Christian and how he earned the nickname "Sparky" for leaving the tinfoil on a personal lasagna once in the microwave when he caught her holding back a yawn. A quick look at his phone showed that it was nearly two-thirty in the morning. Most of the stages seemed to be coming to the end of their sets, and some had seemed to close up altogether as the crowds thinned significantly. The only food carts still opened, besides the doughnut shop, were a couple of other dessert shops, the nacho stand, and one of two places still selling drinks. By the people attending those stands, Dimitri could only hope that they were offering more water than alcohol.

"I should probably get back to my campsite. Liss and Sparky are probably are getting worried by now."

Dimitri nodded, not wanting to let her go quite yet, but knowing that he would have to soon. A slower song rang out over the expanse. He wasn't sure which stage it came from, but it was clear enough to recognize. It was slow, sweet, and perfect for the moment.

"May I?" He held out his hand, the suggestion obvious.

She gave him a curious look, hesitant to take it. Though they had been talking for hours, their physical contact had been limited to occasional shoulder bumps or leg brush since leaving the others and the blasting retro pop.

With a smirk, he teased her. "I can't believe it, Roza. You're holding back?"

"Shut up and dance with me."

She couldn't say no to the way he was looking at her with that one raised brow, nor could she back down from a challenge.

Just like he knew she would, her hand met his and he pulled her into his arms, holding her warmth against his chest. He wanted to take as much of her as she'd allow, even if it was just a simple dance. Her head rested on his shoulder as his hand ran the expanse of her bare back, warming her while he memorized the feel of her skin against his palm.

When the final chords started to face, he ran his fingers through her hair and watched as her eyes rose to meet his. He saw his future in those eyes. It contained a life where he had more meaning than simply working and hiding behind novels. It had someone he could share his fears and joy with, who truly listened and cared about him. Someone who pushed him to reach for his hopes and dreams. He would wake up looking forward to seeing her smiling face.

And he realized this was his last chance.

"Rose, I -"

Her hand tugged arm. "Oh, just shut up." And like that she was kissing him. It wasn't a sweet little peck like the first kiss between strangers on a first date, but the passionate caress of those who had found their other half and didn't want to let them go.

Eventually, time and circumstance would, though.

She shivered again, reminding him of the time and cold. He stripped off his jacket, leaving him in only a thin cotton shirt. Sliding it over her shoulders, she laughed.

"Wow, kinda big on me."

"You should see the one I typically wear. It'd swallow you whole. I prefer my duster, but I doubted they'd let me in with something like that."

"A duster?" he could see her biting her lip to hide her smile. "Like...a cowboy?"

"Hush. I'm from Montana, remember?" Still, he smiled as she tried – and failed – to contain her laughter. He liked making her laugh, even if it was at his expense. "Come on, let's get you back to your tent."

* * *

They walked slowly, dragging out their time as long as they could. He realized that they were getting closer to his own tent site as they neared hers, but as she stopped at a particular blue and gray tent, there was an unmistakable set of noises that made it clear that she wasn't welcomed right at that moment.

He raised a brow, watching her pull his jacket tighter in her embarrassment.

"Come on," he told her. "You can stay with me for a while."

She took his offered arm, giving one last glance toward her tent. She'd have to thank them in the morning.

As he approached his own tent, he sincerely hoped that Adrian wasn't creating a similar situation that would suddenly leave them out in the cold. Thankfully he not only wasn't entertaining a date, he was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he found that goddess he had been looking for. Dimitri crossed his fingers and wished his cousin well.

He unlocked the small padlock keeping their tent closed and unzipped the front flap, letting her in before following behind. They didn't have a ton in their space, but he could offer her some water and a few dry snacks, as well as some warm blankets.

Unlike their conversation on the hill, the moment now seemed too still, too hesitant, too...awkward. There seemed to be something they wanted to say, but couldn't. After twenty minutes of near silence, Dimitri checked his phone.

"You know, they're probably done now. Would you like me to walk you back?"

The words were on both their lips, but they weren't his to say.

"No."

As he opened his arms and she closed the distance between them, he knew they were bound to get together. From the first moment their eyes met, he knew this woman was his destiny.

He didn't know how it happened, but as he gently laid her on the floor he whispered, "Let's not look back. Just keep your eyes on me."

She kissed him, stopping his words with a smile and words that he was only too happy to agree to: "Shut up and dance with me."

* * *

 **Author's Note**

* * *

This is dedicated to Ines who had been waiting almost a year for this fic. You are one of my best fanfic friends (and friends PERIODl!) and always there when I need you (or an edit). Love you Bae, this one's for you.

The music festival that I'm envisioning here is the Sasquatch Festival that will be held this upcoming week in Washington. Back in 2012, Walk the Moon actually played there!

Finally, every single lyric of the song is hidden somewhere in this fic. Have fun finding them!


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